The present invention generally relates to vehicle and public transit information management methods and systems. More specifically, various embodiments of the present invention relate to intelligent commercial and public transit management systems and methods.
Commercial transport and public transit drivers carry significant social and public responsibilities for the safety of their passengers, cargo, and others who share local road and highways. In some municipalities, states, and countries, the authenticity of a government-certified commercial driver is frequently in question because an uncertified driver often illegally substitutes for the government-certified commercial driver. For example, in certain countries, tragic traffic accidents have routinely occurred when uncertified drivers who are unable to handle complex traffic situations in long distance travel illegally drove commercial vehicles with a falsified driver's license or another form of identification. While increased penalties for illegal driving of commercial vehicles or other conventional regulatory measures, in theory, deter uncertified drivers from operating commercial vehicles, many conventional deterrence measures against uncertified drivers have been ineffective in some countries, states, and municipalities.
Furthermore, even when legitimate commercial transport and public transit drivers are driving commercial vehicles, a dangerous level of driver tiredness and/or attention deficit increase the probability of a traffic accident. Because buses, trucks, and other commercial vehicles are typically heavy and carry a large number of passengers and/or cargo, the consequence of a traffic accident caused by a tired or inattentive commercial driver may be more severe than other types of traffic accidents. Certain countries, states, and/or municipalities have required a commercial transport and public transit driver to take a mandatory rest from continuous driving. For example, Chile requires a commercial bus driver to take a mandatory one-hour rest after five hours of continuous driving, or a mandatory eight-hour rest after eight hours of continuous driving. In another example, Indonesia requires a mandatory thirty-minute rest after four hours of continuous driving, or a mandatory eight-hour rest after eight hours of driving. However, much of the regulatory measures for mandatory driver rest requirements, such as the examples drawn from Chile and Indonesia, are difficult to monitor and enforce with conventional commercial transport infrastructure.
Moreover, a lack of tamperproof identity validation of drivers in a commercial transport and public transit industry also exposes government agencies and transportation companies to an unacceptable level of liability lawsuits, especially when passengers are harmed in an accident involving an uncertified driver for a commercial vehicle. In addition, the lack of tamperproof identity validation of drivers in the commercial transport and public transit industry make criminal prosecution of certified drivers difficult when some certified drivers illegally lend their identification cards or other pertinent information to uncertified drivers for monetary gain.
Therefore, it may be desirable to devise an intelligent fleet management system and a related method which provide a convenient and tamperproof validation of commercial drivers' identification inside commercial vehicles. Furthermore, it may also be desirable to devise an intelligent fleet management system and a related method which can store, track, monitor, and report information related to commercial drivers' actions and behaviors. In addition, it may also be desirable to provide an intelligent fleet management system and a related method which can analyze driving patterns of a particular commercial vehicle and alert its driver and/or a monitoring center in real time, if a dangerous behavior is detected.